The 900-year-old Norman keep where you can sleep like a king

We invited travel writer, Jane Knight, to be the very first guest in The Royal Chamber. Here is her review which can also be read in The Telegraph

At the newly opened Royal Chamber at Hedingham Castle you get ‘England’s poshest B&B’ all to yourself

By Jane Knight, TRAVEL WRITER

'An ornate four-poster in dusky pink and gold stood majestically on a raised dais beneath a beamed wooden ceiling'

Talk about an understatement. The sign at the top of the puff-inducing spiral staircase read “dormitory floor”. Yet this was no dorm. On the upper level of the 110ft Norman keep at Hedingham Castle in Essex, this room looked fit for royalty.

For starters, an ornate four-poster in dusky pink and gold stood majestically on a raised dais beneath a beamed wooden ceiling. Deep window recesses with magnificent views over the countryside reached 12ft into walls thick with history – Matilda, wife of the English king Stephen, died in the castle in 1151, and Henry VII visited for a week in 1496.

But there were modern comforts, too, cleverly concealed so they didn’t look anachronistic. An enormous carved cabinet at the foot of the bed opened to reveal a bath, behind which a coat of arms on the wall parted at the press of a button to reveal a flatscreen TV. On one side of the chamber, a wardrobe concealed a fridge bulging with goodies including smoked salmon and charcuterie for breakfast, plus a bottle of English bubbly. On the other side, a modern loo was secreted in a small room (no ancient garderobes here).

Hedingham Castle sits in lush grounds

Could this be Britain’s poshest B&B? “It’s probably the noblest and possibly the most majestic,” was the modest reply from Demetra Lindsay, who runs the castle with husband Jason, a descendant of the illegitimate son of Charles II and Nell Gwynne. “How many places can you stay in a 900-year-old Norman keep?”

The newly opened Royal Chamber is certainly exclusive: it’s the only bedroom at five-storey Hedingham Castle, a text-book example of a Norman keep, built in 1140 on land given by William the Conqueror to Aubrey de Vere, whose descendants became the powerful Earls of Oxford. While it can be booked as part of a wedding in the castle’s lower floors, it’s also available as a B&B if you fancy having a whole castle to yourselves.

I did, and was the first journalist through the wooden door – a Knight in the castle – dragging my sister (born a Knight, now downgraded to a Court) up the spiral brick steps with me.

Hedingham Castle is located in the East of England on the Essex-Suffolk border.

The room has long been the dream of the Lindsays, who have worked tirelessly to make the castle a going concern since moving into the 18th-century mansion just across the Tudor bridge from the castle in 2004. Then came covid, which effectively stopped the clock, while cash was supplied by a governmental heritage grant.

It wasn’t easy, even though art-dealer Jason carries out much of the building work while Demetra, an architect, liaises with the relevant authorities to obtain the reams of permits needed to work on such a historic building.

“It was a never-ending project,” said Jason, detailing the challenges associated with insulating, heating and installing a bathroom at the top of the keep. Not to mention getting everything up those spiral stairs; the bath was particularly problematic, carried by “very grumpy men who needed lots of chocolate afterwards”, said Demetra.

The five-storey Hedingham Castle is a text-book example of a Norman keep, built in 1140

Look carefully at the carving on the front of its wooden cabinet and you can see the profile of someone who looks like Cleopatra gazing at a more Georgian-looking gentleman. It’s just one example of how the couple use antiques, bargain finds, upcycling and a bit of know-how; the wood came from another piece of furniture but was only partially carved, so Jason added what was supposed to be Demetra’s profile.

They found the bed on eBay and Jason made the dais beneath it using wood from Southend Pier after Jamie Oliver, who was filming at Hedingham, tipped him off that it might be available.

As an unusual extra, the chamber shares the top floor of the keep with an escape room, a game where participants battle to solve a series of clues. It made a topical pre-dinner exercise for my sister and me to try the Magna Carta game, learning as we played that King John besieged the castle in 1216.

Dinner is a short walk away at one of the pubs in the charming village of Hedingham Castle. You can, though, opt for an even more exclusive experience, with a feast for two in the castle’s Banqueting Hall, beneath an enormous Norman arch – said to be the largest in Britain at 28ft wide and 20ft high.

The Banqueting Hall, beneath an enormous Norman arch – said to be the largest in Britain at 28ft wide and 20ft high

Do not over imbibe – I counted 106 steps up to the room, where the bath and bubbly beckoned, with the TV screen displaying a crackling fire to add to the atmosphere. The bed proved supremely comfortable though I swear I could hear a ghost rumbling around the escape room, even if my sister pointed out that it was just the heating.

If there’s one disadvantage to the Royal Chamber, it’s that only immense floor-to-ceiling curtains rather than a solid wall separate it from the escape room. While you don’t notice this from the bedroom, approaching it via the escape room lacks a little grandeur.

However, it’s a small price to pay for a night in a castle. The next morning, we enjoyed a private tour, taking in the intricate chevron moulding round window arches and ancient graffiti in the walls of the minstrels gallery before exploring the grounds where once more castle buildings stood, including an octagonal Tudor tower.

In the past I’ve stayed in the room Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn supposedly slept in at Thornbury Castle in Gloucestershire, in a room with an arrow slit in the bathroom at Sussex’s Amberley Castle, and in the Tudor village adjoining Hever Castle in Kent. But I’ve never had an entire castle to myself. As far as posh B&B stays go, this one really hit the heights. 

Jane Knight was a guest at Hedingham Castle. A night in the Royal Chamber costs £495 per night for two people, including a bottle of champagne, chocolates and a continental breakfast. With dinner for two, the price is £1,195. See here for more information.